Probiotic Reviews: How We Find, Review And Rate Probiotics

Before we dive into how we do our detailed probiotic reviews, there’s something that I want to mention about probiotics in general.

Since all people have variations in how their digestive and immune systems work, this means that supplements, including probiotics, will have varying effects on each person.

A probiotic that works like a charm for me may not work for you and vice versa.

An example is someone suffering from irregularity may love a particular probiotic and see great improvement from it.  However, someone else may experience uncomfortable diarrhea from that very same supplement.

We’ll try our very best to point out which probiotics we think work best and which to avoid.  That’s what our ranking of the best probiotic supplements is all about.

Sometimes it does take a little trial and error to find that perfect match for you and your body.

If one doesn’t work for you, fear not! Take note of what happened and move onto the next.

I can personally vouch for the incredible benefits that probiotics have had on my health and overall well being.

But there’s no way I can guarantee what works for me will work for you.

And keep in mind that all the opinions and probiotic reviews on this website are my personal opinions and observations.  These aren’t double-blind clinical trials with hundreds of participants conducted over many years.

We buy them, try them and tell you what we think.  And hopefully our experiences will help you find a specific probiotic that works perfectly for your needs and your body.

With all that being said, let’s now quickly go over how we do our probiotic reviews and what we look for when evaluating a probiotic supplement.

Probiotic Reviews: Our Process

When testing out a new probiotic supplement, we follow a very specific set of procedures to make sure that each and every supplement gets a fair shake.

First and foremost, we buy every product we test (we don’t accept “free” product from manufacturers).

We pride ourselves in personally testing out each and every product.

Unlike a lot of other “review” websites, they don’t actually test out the products (imagine that!).

We form our opinions based on our specific procedures and not from the “marketing” information provided by manufacturers.

Once we get the probiotics, we take the supplement as directed, such as with or without a meal and the number of doses recommended per day.

While taking the probiotic, I keep notes on every aspect of what I experienced, which includes the following…

What We’re Looking At When We Try A Probiotic

Here are the 6 criteria we use for our probiotic reviews:

1. Ingredients/Strain Profile:  Here we list and analyze the specific probiotic strains and how many total strains are used.  We also point out potential benefits from specially noted strains.
2. Delivery System:  Here we explain how the probiotics are delivered such as capsules, tablets, pills, powders, etc.  We also measure how big the supplements are and how easy they are to take.
3. Allergy Concerns:  Here we analyze how allergy friendly (or not allergy friendly) a probiotic is.  We list any potential allergens such as soy, lactose/dairy, gluten, egg, fish, crustacean shellfish, tree nuts, wheat, peanuts, starch and yeast.  We also note if they have any artificial ingredients or preservatives and if they are vegetarian/vegan.
4. Price/Value:  How much does the probiotic cost overall, how much it costs per day, and if it’s a good value or not?
5. Side Effects:  Here we analyze if any noted side effects occurred that were negative or unpleasant.
6. Guarantee:  Does the product have a money back or satisfaction guarantee of any kind or return policy?

How The Overall Rating Is Assigned and What It Means

After I’ve reviewed and tried a particular probiotic, I write up (and film) an overall opinion and assign a rating between 1 and 5, 5 being the best.

Here’s what the ratings mean…

0-1.0 Stars: This product really isn’t very good. It has negative side effects, bad value, high cost, allergy concerns, and no guarantee of any kind.

1.5-2.0 Stars: Not a good product but may have a good quality or two. Such as being affordable or a good probiotic strain used.

2.5-3.0 Stars: An average product that will work for some people. Probably is a decent value and is fairly allergy friendly and comes with some side effects.

3.5-4.0 Stars: An above average product that has a lot of positive attributes. In addition to being a good value, it probably is allergy friendly and has a solid strain profile.

4.5-5.0 Stars: The best of the best in my opinion.  I think this product will work great for the majority of people who try it.  It may not be the cheapest probiotic on the market, but there’s a good chance it’ll be a good value, allergy friendly, easy to take, solid strain profile, little to no side effects, and some sort of guarantee.

Putting It All Together: How To Use Our Site To Find the Best Probiotic Product For YOU

After each new probiotic review, we update our current rankings.

Our list of the top 10 probiotics can be found here.

If a particular probiotic doesn’t make the cut onto our top 10, you can still find a thorough review.  Here’s our list of every probiotic we’ve tried.

Be sure to remember that we are constantly finding, reviewing and updating all the probiotics that we can get our hands on.

To stay up-to-date on the best probiotic supplements available today, be sure to check our website and our Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter accounts.

Lastly, if there’s a probiotic supplement you’d like us to review, let us know on Facebook or Twitter. Or send us an email to the address listed on our Contact Us page.

We love finding and testing out new probiotics!